WASHINGTON — Congress sent President Bush legislation Saturday designed to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, spur home buying and prop up struggling mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The president intends to sign the bill as soon as he receives it.
It is the government's most sweeping response yet to the nation's housing crisis.
The Senate, in a rare weekend session, overwhelmingly approved the measure, 72 to 13, a reflection of the election-year jitters on Capitol Hill over the troubled economy.
Earlier in the week, the House approved the bill, 272 to 152.
"Today, Congress did more than send a bill to the president -- we sent a message to American families that help is on the way," said Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), who helped write the legislation.
"In addition to providing urgently needed relief to homeowners on the brink of losing their homes, this legislation will address our broader economic problems by helping to reform our housing sector and provide reassurances to our financial markets," Dodd said.
Bush plans to sign the legislation despite reservations about "some provisions, including nearly $4 billion to help lenders, not the homeowners this legislation is intended to serve," said Tony Fratto, deputy press secretary.
"It's been nearly six years since we called for a strong, independent regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and nearly a year since the president called on Congress to quickly pass legislation to modernize the Federal Housing Administration to keep more deserving Americans in their homes, especially low-income Americans," Fratto said.
Critics of the measure called it a bailout of speculators and irresponsible borrowers at potentially huge cost to taxpayers.
"This bill is fraught with too much risk and too little protection to the taxpayer," Sen. Christopher Bond (R-Mo.) said in a statement, contending that it would allow lenders to "dump their worst subprime mortgages" on the Federal Housing Administration.
All the votes opposing the legislation were cast by Republicans.
Democrats, who control Congress, are looking at other proposals to turn around the economy. Lawmakers in September will debate a second election-year economic stimulus package that would provide $50 billion or more for bridge and road projects, home-heating assistance and other matters.
